The invention relates to a program-controlled sewing or embroidery machine comprising a stitch-forming device, an integrated microcomputer, at least one memory and at least one data interface, as well as a keyboard and a display for entering and monitoring values for program control. The invention further relates to a method of operating such sewing or embroidery machines.
A sewing machine of the above general type is known from German Patent Application No. 1950177.5. It essentially comprises a device or machine part or portion which forms a stitch and supports, among others, the sewing needle, a feed unit having a stop apparatus for the sewn material, and an integrated microcomputer which controls and monitors or checks the functions of both the stitch-forming portion and the feed unit.
Page 7, lines 35 to 43 of DE 41 05 089 A1, further mentions that the microcomputer can also be connected via an interface to a communication device which includes a transmission channel this transmission channel can be a telephone line for example. However, from the above-mentioned published, non-examined German patent application, the purpose the transmission channel is intended to serve cannot be determined. In particular, the question remains unanswered whether the transmission channel represents a connection line between the input and output devices and an additional personal computer system (PC) mentioned in the patent application, which devices are disposed separately from the sewing machine.
It can be inferred from FIG. 1 of the above-mentioned German patent application that the external PC connected to the sewing machine is connected via a further communication device to a data line, possibly a telephone line. Hence, insofar as embroidery pattern data, for example, are to be copied from a remote database (mailbox) of a central computer to the sewing machine disclosed in DE 41 05 089 A1, these data must first be transmitted to the PC, modified there if necessary and subsequently loaded, by means of the microcomputer, into an internal or external memory of the sewing machine via the interface.
The primary drawback of this type of arrangement would be the relatively high equipment costs necessary for transmission of the externally-stored embroidery pattern data to the program-controlled sewing machine via a PC.